NOTE FROM RACHEL: There will be no Freeze Frame Friday this week; my illustrious co-blogger Kevin was so inspired by yesterday’s review of Circus Daze that he sent a few words of his own off into the computerized ether. As I felt it to be the perfect companion piece, his post really needs to be right above mine:

Well, as usual, I thank my co-blogger, Rachel Newstead, for doing such a magnificent job of reviewing, in full detail, the HAPPY HARMONIES cartoon, “CIRCUS DAZE”, starring, as she pointed out, the fully humanized Bosko and Honey.

I’d always said that the humanized Bosko, especially in the final three cartoons in the MGM-distributed series, felt more connected to the Hal Roach OUR GANG comedies, moreso than almost all of the other toons under the HAPPY HARMONIES banner, more typically dedicated to bringing to life notable fairy tales or cute little musicals. In some cases, you could actually imagine some of the antics that happen within the first few cartoons in the MGM collection of titles starring BOSKO as having been directly inspired by the antics of the OUR GANG kids. Continue reading →